Larry watched, reaching out a hand to Alice’s black nylon-clad thigh under her short school skirt. ‘Always fancied a threesome,’ he snickered, although his touch was tentative and his fingers shook slightly. Alice noticed the flicker of relief across his face when she pushed him off and sat up. ‘No chance!’

‘So why don’t you want to live here anymore?’ Georgia scrolled through the songs on Alice’s iPod, settled on a Lil Wayne track and replaced the iPod in the speaker dock. ‘I mean, obviously it must be shit, with Frankie gone . . .’

‘It’s really shit,’ Alice said with feeling. ‘Helen’s in a total state the whole time. Dad’s gone all quiet and won’t talk to anyone, the police are in and out – well, that Family Liaison Officer’s only just left us alone, she was there for days, like they were worried we were all going to, like, I dunno, stab each other or something . . . Which Helen and Dad probably would do if they got the chance. They totally think it’s all my fault that Frankie’s been taken. And now, to top it all off, my bloody Nan turns up.’

‘Don’t you like your nan?’ Larry enquired.

Alice snorted. ‘She’s a horrible interfering old cow. Even Dad doesn’t like her, and she’s his mum. She only turned up ’cos she thought she might have a chance to be on TV. She keeps going outside and talking to the paparazzi, offering them “exclusives”. It’s so embarrassing. Dad and Helen have even gone out for a drive just so they don’t have to talk to her. Still, at least it means we can hang out here without them hassling us . . .’

‘Do you really miss Frankie, babes?’ Georgia asked.

Alice had to grit her teeth not to snap back. ‘Of course I do! It’s so quiet here without her. And it’s just so horrible, not knowing what’s happened to her, whether or not some fucking paedophile’s doing . . . you know . . . stuff to her.’

Her voice cracked and two big tears dropped straight from her eyes on to her flowery Cath Kidston duvet cover.

Larry looked simultaneously mortified and concerned. He hugged her, and this time Alice felt comforted by his odour.